Standalone Oculus Go goes on sale with hope of bringing VR to the masses

Oculus Go, the company's first all-in-one VR headset, and second system to date, is now on sale. As had been rumored, Facebook used its annual F8 conference as a launchpad for the standalone virtual reality headset, which is now available in 23 countries.

The Oculus Go isn't the first standalone headset, but it's the biggest name to cut the cord so far. The headset has a 2560 x 1440 (538 pixels per inch) display, making it optically superior to the PC-dependant Rift. It also comes with built-in speakers, mic and bundled controller, so you'll be able to strap it on and instantly transition to a virtual reality; no movement trackers to awkwardly balance around the room, no smartphones to slide in.

But it's the price that's key here: ¬£199 for the base model with 32GB of space for apps and games, or ¬£249 if you want to double your storage. That's half the price of the fully-loaded Oculus Rift and a much more reasonably priced entry ticket to VR, something that could help push this still-burgeoning medium to the masses.

But at that price there must be some shortcomings, and the biggest is how Oculus Go tracks your movements. The Go headset and controller only offer three degrees of freedom (3DoF), so your VR body and hands remain in a stationary position the entire time. You can look around, but you can't wander.

That means you won't be able to enjoy all the same games as the Oculus Rift and developers will be more limited in what they can do with the Go. Oculus says there will be 1,000 games, apps and experience to play on day one, including Anshar Online, Arktika.1 and They Suspect Nothing. The Go runs a pared down version of the Oculus store you find on the Rift, and you'll be able to browse, buy and download all on the headset itself.

The Oculus Go also has competition to consider, though it easily trumps rivals on price. The Lenovo Mirage Solo is the Daydream VR version of the Go with comparable optics, but offers a superior 6DoF head tracking with 3DoF hand movements. It is, however, twice the price. Meanwhile the Vive Focus, which is expected to hit the market later this year, will also offer 6DoF head tracking and 3DoF hands, and will likely be priced somewhere around the $500 mark.